Angels at Dodgers
The Los Angeles Angels probably won't catch Houston in the American League West, but they are starting to resemble a legitimate wild-card contender as they visit the Los Angeles Dodgers on Tuesday for the second contest of their four-game interleague series. The Angels extended their winning streak to three games with a 4-0 victory on Monday, moving within one game of Minnesota for the second wild card while ending three significant Dodger streaks in the process.
The Dodgers rode a 10-game winning streak - 11 at Dodger Stadium, where they are a major league-best 32-11 - into Monday's contest and had homered in 17 straight contests to match the Los Angeles club record set in 1960. The Dodgers still own the best record in the National League (51-27) and lead the West by one game over Arizona. The Angels, who trail Houston by 12 1/2, are 5-2 on an eight-game road trip against teams in playoff positions (New York Yankees, Boston), with Wednesday and Thursday's contests against the Dodgers set for Angel Stadium. The Angels' Jesse Chavez has won only once in his last six turns and opposes Kenta Maeda, who makes a spot start that provides the Dodgers' rotation an extra day of rest.
TV: 10:10 p.m. ET, FSN West (Angels), SportsNet LA (Dodgers)
PITCHING MATCHUP: Angels RH Jesse Chavez (5-7, 5.15 ERA) vs. Dodgers RH Kenta Maeda (5-3, 4.62)
Chavez escaped with a no-decision after allowing five runs and seven hits in four innings of the Angels' 10-5 victory at Yankee Stadium on Thursday. The 33-year-old Californian is 1-2 with a 6.10 ERA in his last six starts, allowing 40 hits over 31 frames. Chavez, who posted a 4.21 ERA in 23 relief appearances with the Dodgers last season after being acquired at the trade deadline from Toronto, is 1-1 with a 3.32 ERA in 11 games (two starts) against them.
Maeda last started at Cincinnati on June 18, when he allowed one run, three hits and one walk while striking out five in five innings of an 8-7 victory. The 29-year-old native of Japan has pitched once since - at Colorado on Friday, when he produced a scoreless seventh inning in the Dodgers' 6-1 win. Maeda allowed four runs and five hits in four frames of a 7-6 loss to the Angels on May 16, 2016 in his only appearance against them.
WALK-OFFS
1. Angels DH Albert Pujols played his fifth game of the season at first base Monday but is expected to serve only as a pinch-hitter on Tuesday.
2. Dodgers SS Corey Seager (12 home runs, 39 RBIs) missed his third straight game on Monday (hamstring). “We kind of want to push it as far as we can, as far as days to not put him on the DL,” manager Dave Roberts told reporters. “It potentially could happen, but we’re hopeful that we don’t need to.”
3. The Angels stole three bases Monday, bringing their major league-leading total to 71, while Cameron Maybin swiped his AL-best 24th of the season.